Bag house dust collectors are generally used to filter particulate material from industrial off gases, before the gases are vented or cycled. The arrangements generally include flexible filter bags supported within the construction. The filter bags are generally secured to a tube sheet, which separates the clean air side from the dirty air side of the filter system or collector. A filter cage or filter tube frame, which has a collar at one end, secures the bag to the tube sheet. The cage or frame also keeps the bag from collapsing and keeps the bag generally steady in the air flow streams.
Large industrial bag house dust collectors may include hundreds of filter tubes and bags therein. These bags must occasionally be removed from the tube sheet, for example, for maintenance or replacement. In order to remove the bag and the filter tube frame from the tube sheet, the collar and bag must be unseated or unsealed from the tube sheet and then the bag and frame must be lifted out of the aperture in which the bag and frame are seated; this is typically done by the operator reaching at least partially into the bag and frame in order to gain a secure grip. The force needed to unseat and remove the bag and filter tube frame from the tube sheet can be 30 to 45 pounds force.